Amazing and scary adventures in the life of Angus

Angus five minutes ago. "What did I do wrong this time?"

Some things that Angus has recently tried to eat:

a button
firewood
a lens cap
the plastic top to an orange-juice carton
a coaster (it was cardboard, so I just let him chew)
the bristles of my Russian broom
my Ugg boots (always)
the hem of my bathrobe
the hem of my coat
my hair
Rosie

Last night he picked up the remote and ran off with it; it was quite hilarious to see Doug chase him through the downstairs. Men do not like to lose control of the remote.

When I got home from work, it was snowing. So beautiful! When I came in from shoveling, I saw a remarkable sight: Angus leaping off the couch.

This is remarkable only in that the night before he was still too small to scramble up there. How did he do that? Oh yes, he is growing. I should weigh him again, but I am scared.

He is kind of a wimp about the cold, plus he wants to follow me everywhere, which is rather endearing, of course, reminiscent of my first dog, Toby, who adored me so much that one time at Ellen Akins' house in Cornucopia we were playing fetch and as Toby brought the tennis ball back to me he ran right into Ellen's picnic table, because he didn't see it, because he couldn't bear to take his eyes off me. That is a good dog.

Angus is not quite that good. But he's pretty good. Anyway, the dogs were out in the yard yesterday morning and, as always, I put the baby gate at the bottom of the porch stairs to keep them out there.

I went in the kitchen to start making my breakfast and the next thing I knew, there was Angus, wagging his little white-tipped tail at my side. How the heck? I went out and the baby gate was still in place, Rosie on the yard side of it, looking perplexed.

I put the squirming little Angus back out in the yard and then stood back to watch. He ran around to the side of the stairs, stood on his hind legs, and then squeezed between the banisters that support the railing. Pushed through, raced up the steps, wagged his white-tipped tail proudly.

Of course if he does this in another week or so, he is going to get stuck. Because, of course, he is growing. But the most amazing part of that adventure is this: The dog has problem-solving skills. The dog can do critical thinking. The dog could assess the situation, and figure out a solution.

At ten weeks old.

Now that is scary.